Article image
Article image

Before a gathering of Auckland architects on Monday Captain G. S. Keesing of the Australian Army, who has been employed in designing official monuments in France and on Gallipoli, gave an.instructive lecture on memorials. Captain Keesing spoke on lines similar to those he ttfok in a recent interview in the Auckland Star, stressing the importance of long views in the designing of memorials, and of choosing the best sites. He said that in Auckland the harbour should be regarded as the centre of treatment for a war memorial ; whatever was put up should be visible from the water. He also emphasised the value of Auckland’s hills as sites for monuments, and spoke of the necessity (and this is of interest to Wanganui) of placing a monument where it could be seen from many points. Captain Keesing also dealt briefly with street memorials, including the treatment of terminals in cities abroad, and said that the more points from which a street monument could be seen the better the site for the purpose. He instanced the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, which could be seen from a dozen streets, leading off its square. Te emphasise the need for designing monuments on a large scale, Captain Keesing mentioned that the Statue of Liberty in New York was so large that the base was as high as a three-storey building, •the arm that held the torch had a staircase inside it, and the rim of the torch was a balcony from which a view of New York could be obtained. Yet some people, he said, might consider a life-size figure big enough to put in a commanding position.

This article text was automatically generated and may include errors. View the full page to see article in its original form.
Permanent link to this item

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/WC19200211.2.52.2

Bibliographic details

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXVI, Issue 17789, 11 February 1920, Page 6

Word Count
274

Untitled Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXVI, Issue 17789, 11 February 1920, Page 6

Untitled Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXVI, Issue 17789, 11 February 1920, Page 6